When I first planned NYC Trip #2, I originally penciled in “Momofuku Ko” on my schedule. Arguably the hardest reservation to get in all of New York (I heard David Chang won’t even let his parents bypass his infamous Momofuku reservation system), the only way to get a reservation is to stalk the website and count down the seconds until reservations for the following week’s seating opened. I felt confident I would be able to score one of the twelve available seats for that night…that is, until I totally forgot about making reservations. I remembered 12 hours too late. (Oops!)

…Okay then, onto Plan B.

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Getting into Momofuku Ssam Bar is much easier than Momofuku Ko. Unless you reserve an order of their famous bo ssam pork shoulder ahead of time, Ssam Bar is a first-come, first-serve eatery. My suggestion is to get there early, before the lunch/dinner crowds hit – otherwise, you’ll be escorted to the Momofuku Milk Bar next door, where you’ll wait for your table in a somewhat uncomfortable position. (Milk Bar has no chairs and waits are typically about half an hour or longer.)

Plates at Ssam are decently sized but…well…my dining companions and I are eaters. Therefore, for the three of us, we ordered all of the following:

Santa Barbara Uni, Whipped Tofu, Tapioca, Shrimp Crackers

Call me dense but I didn’t get this dish. Maybe the contrast in texture was meant to be the focus, but I didn’t really understand how the flavors of the whipped tofu, the chewy tapioca/boba balls and the shrimp crackers were supposed to work with the rich, buttery uni. (The uni was fresh and delicious by itself though.)

Fuji Apple Kimchi, Jowl Bacon, Maple Labne, Arugula

The kimchi apples, on the other hand, I understood – it was easily one of the top 5 dishes I tasted during my second NYC trip. Crisp Fuji apples are coated in the peppery kimchi seasoning (minus the vinegar) and topped with meaty bacon and spicy arugula. The labne (a strained yogurt) mellows everything out. A complete bite of all four components? Amazing.

Country Ham

We ordered two types of country ham: the smokier Edward’s Wigwam ham and the non-smoked Finchville’s ham. All I have to say is, if you’re going to go for ham, get it smoked.

Steamed Buns, Pork Belly, Hoisin, Cucumbers, Scallions

When I used to hear about Momofuku pork buns I used to think, “What’s so good about Momofuku pork buns…? Pffft. Big deal.” Now I think, “OMG, I WANT A PORK BUN.” Just imagine a peking duck bun – the familiar hoisin and scallion flavors and the texture of the fluffy bun – but now swap the duck for soft and tender pork belly that just melts in your mouth. Doesn’t seem like a big deal but it is – these pork buns are DELICIOUS.

Corned Beef Terrine, Fried Egg Sauce, Tea Brined Egg Salad

I was uninspired by this dish, possibly because I ate it immediately after those mind-blowing Momofuku pork buns. Although it was tasty, at the end of the day, it just felt like chunks of corned beef compressed in a terrine mold.

Fried Baby Artichokes, Pistachio, Sunchokes, Bottarga

I’m not a fried artichokes kind of girl as I find they lose their tender artichoke qualities when they’re immersed in a vat of oil and end up with a texture reminiscent of dry leaves. Therefore, instead of commenting on the fried artichokes, I just want to bring your attention to the delicious sunchoke puree smeared on the side of the bowl in the picture above. (I would have much rather had a bowl of just that!)

Chili Soft Shell Crab, Green Plum, Asparagus, Lemon Confit

The tart lemon was a nice accompaniment against the asparagus and a nice contrast against the crispy soft shell crab. However, I don’t recall tasting any of the chili that is referred to in the dish description.

Spicy Pork Sausage, Rice Cakes, Chinese Broccoli, Crispy Shallots

The meaty, spicy dduk bok-ki was a great way to end the meal. The rice cakes were crispy on the outside but soft and chewy in the middle (just the way I like them!). The pork sausage had a real kick to it too. (I wouldn’t recommend ordering anything after this one.)

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And now, for a side tangent:

For those who may not have seen The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list, Ssam sits right around the middle of that list at #26. It’s the 5th US restaurant on the list, only topped by Alinea (in Chicago) and Daniel, Per Se and Le Bernardin (all in NYC). It’s six spots above The French Laundry (in Yountville, CA).

When first scanning the 2010 list, I was surprised to see Ssam ranked so highly. At the time, I hadn’t read much about the place so I attributed my reaction to ignorance and gave it the benefit of the doubt. However, after dining at both Ssam and at the last restaurant to make the cut (Eleven Madison Park at #50) in the same week, I left NYC still very confused. Momofuku Ssam Bar…#26…?

According to the Momofuku website, the name “Momofuku” means “lucky peach”. I believe it’s a fitting name – Without a doubt, like a ripe peach, Momofuku Ssam Bar is delicious and worth trying. However, I find the inclusion of the word “lucky” even more fitting – As tasty as it may be, with a #26 position on the World’s Best list, Momofuku Ssam Bar must be much, much luckier.

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Momofuku Ssam Bar
207 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10003
(212) 254-3500
Website: http://www.momofuku.com/

Momofuku Milk Bar

We started off the night in Milk Bar (while waiting for our table); we ended our night there as well. I wanted something sweet but since I was slightly stuffed at this point, I only split a slice of David Chang’s infamous “Crack Pie”.

Crack Pie – Toasted Oat Crust, Gooey Butter Filling

I think it’s logical to assume that Crack Pie was probably named for its supposedly addictive qualities. I have no doubt that there are people out there who are addicted after bite one; I, however, am not one of them. Honestly, it just tasted like butter and sugar to me (which is basically all that’s in it anyway). I’m not sure what I expected from it but…well…if this is crack, I think I’ll pass next time.

What I won’t pass on, however, is Milk Bar’s cereal milk soft serve. As a girl who likes her cereal SUPER soggy before chowing down, I really enjoyed this – its taste was spot on, exactly like the sweet, sugary milk you typically find at the bottom of your bowl. I’m not sure I would purchase an actual bottle of their cereal milk (especially since I feel like I could easily re-create it by pouring myself a bowl of cereal at home) but the cereal milk soft serve is definitely worth the trip.

Momofuku Milk Bar
207 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10003
(212) 254-3500
Website: http://www.momofuku.com/

The modern looking “shack” you see above is the Shake Shack. Known for their burgers and frozen custard shakes, it is the only place I’ve heard of on the East Coast with a cult following that rivals In-N-Out’s. I mean, if you thought the drive-thru at In-N-Out was long, just LOOK at the line of people snaking through Madison Square Park. (It’s so long, they even let you can even keep tabs on their line via their “Shack Cam”!) Luckily, I caught the line at a slow point – it only took me about half an hour to get to the front and order the most loaded burger they’ve got.

The Shack Stack is the love child of their regular Shake Shack cheeseburger and their specialty ‘Shroom burger. You have your normal meat patty and cheese, topped with lettuce, tomato and Shack Sauce, as well as a crispy fried portobello filled with melted muenster and cheddar cheese sandwiched in the middle. Personally, I think I would have rather had a regular burger sans ‘shroom. When I have a portobello mushroom in a sandwich, I want to taste it; however, because it was battered, fried and stuffed with cheese, I couldn’t really taste the mushroom hidden inside.

‘Shroom aside, I did enjoy the rest of the burger. The patty itself was juicy and flavorful. The oozing muenster and cheddar may have overpowered the portobello, but complimented the meat naturally. I did find myself wanting more than one leaf of lettuce (a want spawned from my In-N-Out upbringing), but I was willing to overlook the lack of crisp lettuce for the soft potato bread buns.

In a city that feels like it never stops moving, these juicy patties and fluffy buns are worth standing still for. It may not look like the hole-in-the-wall that I imagined, but Shake Shack’s definitely got the soul of one.

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Shake Shack
11 Madison Ave
New York, NY 10010
(212) 889-6600
Website: http://www.shakeshacknyc.com/

Okay, now that I’ve made you hungry, I’ll also make you jealous: The sea urchin and lardo? The burrata and lobster? The octopus and bone marrow?

I ate that. ALL OF THAT.

I find it fitting that Marea is established right across the southern border of Central Park. When I think of Central Park, I think of a lush, green oasis in a concrete jungle; when I think of Marea, I think of a modern, bright dining room in a sea of older, dim restaurants.

Although the fundamental characteristics between Marea and other NYC fine dining establishments are the same (e.g. big windows, crisp linens, glass centerpieces, etc.), there’s something about Marea that is so visually appealing to me. Maybe it was because I went to Marea on a perfectly sunny spring day, but the whole space just seemed to sparkle the moment I walked in. This has to be one of my favorite dining rooms thus far.

Marea’s lunch menu is simple – a two course business lunch for $38, with each additional course costing $19 (although, looking at their online menu now, they’ve increased it to $42 and $21, respectively). The “Ricci” (i.e. the sea urchin and lardo) is not on their lunch menu but after seeing the above No Reservations episode, I begged my way to an order.

(Note: I am going to start transcribing quotes from the No Reservations episode because, honestly, can I describe the following better than King of My Heart? I don’t think so.)

“Two fat sacks of sea urchin roe, plumped with goodness. The briny, swollen membranes held aloft by two tiny chariots of toast. A gossamer thin sheet of lardo, lightly cured pork fat from the mountains of Tuscany, draped over the top and ever so slightly heated, allowed to wilt, to melt over the aroused golden pillows, like a dying swan.” – Anthony Bourdain

Ricci – Sea urchin, lardo, sea salt.

A side tangent: I recently had a very similar dish – uni on toast with olive oil – at Church and State in Los Angeles. There, the olive oil seemed to overwhelm the sea urchin and gave almost a greasy consistency to the uni. This was not the case at Marea.

The sea urchin and lardo, in this instance, were complimentary – Each component maintained the qualities that make it delicious and the other only enhanced the overall taste. The uni was buttery, the lardo was smoky…I only wish we had ordered more.

“Combine seafood and cheese – it’s just not done! It’s like catching your parents having sex! Instinctively, it’s like eww! But not this time…This time it tastes like shame. Delicious, delicious shame.” - Anthony Bourdain

Astice – Nova Scotia lobster, burrata, eggplant al funghetto, basil.

Lobster and burrata. Burrata and lobster. Can you really go wrong? Burrata, by itself, is on my list of favorite things. (Coincidentally enough, sea urchin and bone marrow are also on that list.) Add lobster and it’s become an ever higher ranked favorite!

I was originally worried about the texture of this dish – as Anthony Bourdain already stated, lobster and cheese aren’t really supposed to go together. However, the lobster was firm enough to provide some contrast against the soft burrata.

“It starts innocently enough – hand made fusilli and baby octopus, tossed and mingled together with…OMFG, NO! Bone marrow! The unearthly product melted into and fortifying the sauce like some celestial butter.” – Anthony Bourdain

Fusilli – Durum wheat pasta, red wine braised octopus, bone marrow.

Ordering a pasta dish for lunch after devouring a pasta tasting dinner at Babbo the night before is risky. Finding out that pasta dish can hold its own, even after a full pasta tasting menu, is both relieving and exciting.

The fusilli had great texture, perfectly al dente, and had a great chewiness to it. The octopus was tender, not at all tough. As for the bone marrow? Finding bone marrow was like finding buried treasure – my eyes lit up with every chunk of fatty marrow I dug from underneath the pasta.

To conclude: In the spirit of food porn, let’s just say eating at Marea would be the money shot. (And I’m just going to leave it at that.)

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Marea
240 Central Park South
New York, NY 10021
(212) 582-5100
Website: http://www.marea-nyc.com/

(Picture taken by Jenn)

In a city where ice cream trucks are parked every other block (I think I passed at least four on the way to the BGICT), the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck is one worth finding. Although it may look like a standard ice cream truck from the outside (that is, if you ignore its colorful logo), the flavor combinations that have been known to come out of this truck are anything but standard. Using ingredients such as curry powder, wasabi pea dust, olive oil, sea salt, sriracha…This ain’t your neighborhood ice cream truck.

On this particular day, I was on the search for a choinkwich – a caramelized bacon chocolate ice cream sandwich that Jenn, the other half in my NYC fooding adventures, describes as: “fatty goodness + cold goodness + chewy goodness = heaven“. However, once I found the truck, Doug, the nice guy in the truck, said they weren’t selling them that day. (Story of my life.)

So, I reverted to Plan B: “Doug, what would you recommend to a girl from LA who has never had a big gay ice cream before?”

I got a Salty Pimp.

Again, the above may look like a standard chocolate dipped ice cream cone, with its creamy vanilla ice cream and a crispy chocolate shell, but layered between the ice cream and chocolate is are drizzles of sweet dulce de leche and sprinklings of sea salt. Once you try it, the crunch of sea salt almost becomes a natural accompaniment to the vanilla, chocolate and caramel – specifically, it enhances the flavors of both the chocolate and caramel in this sweet and savory concoction.

And, like that, with a lick of my Salty Pimp, I was sold. The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck is my new big gay best friend.

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Big Gay Ice Cream Truck
New York, NY
Website: http://www.biggayicecreamtruck.com/
Twitter: @biggayicecream

For example, hand shaved ice – I’ve never had my shaved ice shaved by hand. I’ve been told it’s very common on the East Coast, with many street vendors shaving ice by hand on the sidewalk. However, I’ve only had ice shaved by a machine, behind the counter of some Asian tea house in the San Gabriel Valley or at a night market in Taiwan. Therefore, seeing this for the first time boggled my mind:

(Yes, the idea of someone running a blade across a gigantic block of ice to make shaved ice is so novel to me that, when I saw it in action, I had to take a video of it.)

People’s Pops is where I had my first hand shaved ice. Located in the famous Chelsea Market in NYC, you can find them at their brand spanking new counter that they just recently moved into about a month ago. The counter, completely covered with popsicle sticks, is simple and classic, and their popsicles and flavored syrups mirror the same characteristics. With all their products made from fresh fruit obtained locally, you can really taste the difference.

Unlike the typical artificial tasting sugar water, the syrup used in my bartlett pear shaved ice was sweet but not overly, rot your teeth sweet. The pear flavor wasn’t as pure as I imagined it to be – you know, that pear taste where you almost feel like you have pear grit in between your teeth – but it was definitely much better than the fluorescent red and blue colored stuff you get at the carnival. The hand shaved ice adds texture to the ice so you more of a crunch with each bite. And, unlike normal artificial shaved ices, I actually wanted to drink (and did drink) the melted slush at the bottom of my cup.

People’s Pops’ popsicles are refreshing too, but I think the shaved ice is still my favorite. Maybe I just like watching them hand shave ice…

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People’s Pops
425 West 15th Street
New York NY 10014
Website: http://www.peoplespops.com/
Twitter: @peoplespops